UH’s Crawford Jones among four finalists in Astros radio contest

University of Houston backup quarterback Crawford Jones is among four finalists in the Astros’ “You Make The Call” radio apprentice contest, the team announced Thursday.

The finalists are: Jones, Jake Atkinson of Spring, Alex Del Barrio of Mission and Nate Kurant of Kenneth City, Fla. The winner will be part of the team’s 2013 radio broadcast team, conducting pre- and post-game interviews, covering press conferences and serving as a roving reporter during games.

Jones

The four advance to the semifinal round, which will be held Thursday through Sunday at Minute Maid Park. Each finalist will broadcast a segment of the Astros’ radio broadcast. Jones is scheduled to be on-air Sunday.

Fans will once again be able to vote online at astros.com from September 5-10. The Astros will announce the final two contestants Sept. 12.

The final round of competition will consist of the two finalists doing various duties during the Sept. 13-14 radio broadcasts. The winner will be announced during a pre-game ceremony Sept. 26.

Former Astros player, manager and broadcaster Larry DIerker and Emmy Award-winning broadcaster Linda Lorelle are judges for the contest.

“I was amazed by how professional the top 10 sounded,” Dierker said. “It was hard to narrow it down to just four. Congrats to all of them!”

The Astros received more than 300 entries from 17 states when the contest was announced in July. More than 26,000 fan votes were cast for the second round of competition.